VIDEO: US Air Force to retire F-117 stealth fighter

US Air Force Lockheed F-117A Nighthawks will launch their final mission on 21 April, when the iconic stealth fighter flies into retirement, 27 years after the aircraft was first flown in total secrecy.

The Nighthawk made its combat debut in December 1989, conducting the first strikes against Panamanian forces in Operation Just Cause. F-117s went on to make the opening attacks of Operations Desert Storm in 1991, Allied Force in 1999 and Iraqi Freedom in 2003.

Originally designed to carry a pair of 2,000lb laser-guided bombs internally, the aircraft was upgraded to carry satellite-guided munitions and hard-target penetrators.